Clarissa, Letters 161 – 218
by Charlotte Reads Classics
Why did I put Clarissa down for six months? Its great! Last week I read the May letters and have been pleasantly surprised at how easy it has been to pick back up. No more language struggle and I’ve finally got to the part where there is full on plot!
Spoilers in this paragraph only: May sees Clarissa and Lovelace hiding away in town. Surprisingly they are still not married and Lovelace trying to be controlling and adoring in turns. Officially, he is trying to sort out his inheritance and estate settlement but instead he is scheming. The women of the house they are living in are conspiring with Lovelace and stealing Clarissa’s letters. There is a bit of a twist towards the end of this section where Lovelace pretends to be uniting Clarissa with her Uncle. He isn’t though… because he’s Lovelace.
In this section, more than any others, I’ve really started to appreciate Clarissa and her risky position. I’m intrigued by what the eighteenth century attitude to her life choices so far would be, as Richardson seems pretty sensitive to the difficulties in preserving a woman’s reputation – especially when there is a dastardly man involved. Anna Howe is still my favourite character because she is both a voice of reason and helps to remind me that these are essentially the romantic problems of teenagers. I really enjoyed this week’s reading and am going straight for the next part.
[…] One 19th – 25th November: Letter 161 – 218, page 702 Week Two 26th – 2nd December: Letter 219 – 253, page 867 Week Three 3rd […]
Such an encouraging post! I’ve skipped the spoiler paragraph, but my plan is to finish up a couple of lingering books and turn my attention back to Clarissa. I’ve enjoyed reading it, but keep getting distracted by more ‘current’ titles. Giving her my undivided attention will hopefully prove more successful.
I had the same problem – I’m just not good at having more than one book on the go. And once you get to May there is a much livelier plot which helps too!
I am SO HAPPY you’re enjoying it!
Hey, this is probably obvious to everyone, but just in case – have you said “Lovelace” out loud? I noticed when I was talking to a friend about it. Sounds like “Loveless”. 🙂
Haha actually I hadn’t said it out loud! Have now 🙂
Thank you for writing this! Now I want to read the book, but I can’t find a copy at the second hand book store, and I feel guilty about ordering more books from the Book Depository. *Sigh* Maybe I’ll wait for Christmas and get myself a present…
I got it as a Christmas present last year 🙂